Renowned for its infamous smog and severe pollution for centuries, London today has the cleanest air that it has had since the Middle Ages. Some of the most polluted places are the megacities of the developing world -- Shanghai, New Delhi, and Mexico City -- but in the 1930s and 1940s, London was more polluted than any of these cities are today.
Could green be the new black? While stilettos are hitting the catwalks at Paris Fashion Week, students at London's Kingston University have taken up the challenge of trying to lower the industry's carbon footprint by using biodegradable materials to produce luxury clothes, shoes and accessories.
Less than one year after being blinded by an explosion in Afghanistan, U.S. swimmer Bradley Snyder has won a gold medal in the men's 100m freestyle at the 2012 Paralympics. His fast time would have put Snyder in first place in one of the early men's 100m freestyle heats at the London Olympics.
There are no charges or entry requirements at an innovative college in London for homeless people, the first of its kind in the country. Recovery College, set up by St Mungo's charity, is attracting hundreds of students, providing courses which improve practical skills and help to rebuild confidence.
British architect Norman Foster has unveiled a concept to build a network of elevated pathways above London's railways to create safe car-free cycling routes in the wake the most deadly year for cyclists in the city's history.
It's a great promotion for the London Zoo's ongoing Animal Photography Prize, but this time the animal himself took the photograph. A 12-year-old ring tail lemur named Bekily grabbed the camera from his keeper during feeding time and held it up to his face to grab a selfie.
After an intense three-year campaign, Africa's first woman head of state, Liberian President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, has won international forgiveness of its crushing $4.9 billion debt, making way for the revitalization of the war-ravaged West African country.
Two new U.S. Ebola treatment facilities are opening in Liberia this week, completed by the US Army, and new ones are under construction. Meanwhile, there are signs the epidemic might be slowing in that country.
In another effort to defuse sectarian tensions in Lebanon and to build working relationships, the country's top rival Sunni and Shiite Muslim leaders met in a landmark session on Sunday.
Kilna Bil Hayy (All of Us in the Neighbourhood) was created in the hope of enlightening young viewers to the commonalities shared between Lebanon's different communities. Finding understanding and common ground between 6 different communities is the idea behind the television series for kids that premiered this month.
An estimated $1.3 million worth of art from more than 130 international artists, mostly from Syria and Lebanon, is being auctioned at below-gallery prices in Beirut to raise money for Syrian refugee children, reports Reuters News.
Some 300 homeless dogs and cats, many left behind by owners who fled Lebanon during the Hezbollah-Israel war, are headed to new sanctuaries in the United States for adoption, thanks to Beirut for the Ethical Treatment of Animals, reports the AP.